“What’s the matter?” Ash was pretty sure he knew what the problem was, but he looked challengingly at Cooper, as though daring him to say it aloud.
Cooper shrugged. “I know, I know. I am being irrational about this water thing. Yes, there is water under the barge. Yes, I could fall into that water through a hole. Happy now?”
“Yes, actually.” Ash patted his shoulder. “I think if you name and acknowledge this fear openly, you’ll go a long way toward managing it. I want you to be comfortable.” Ash squeezed his shoulder. “I want you to enjoy this weekend.”
The warmth, the tenderness in Ash’s voice softened the edges of Cooper’s discomfort. He could hear it spoken aloud, and he felt the warm protectiveness that enveloped him at Ash’s slightest touch.
If Cooper let Ash go on like this, Ash could probably overwhelm him entirely. Cooper was not the kind of a man who would want to be overwhelmed, but since Ash was so good at taking the fear away, he allowed himself the luxury of relaxing a bit more. He smiled at Ash and leaned into his touch. Just this once, he’d admit a weakness and allow Ash to make it all better.
He turned toward Ash and smiled brightly. “Let’s see what else is here!”
They walked along the other shore of the island, this time moving downstream. The path meandered through groves of trees, whose species were numerous: maple and sycamore, cherry and elm. A lovely clearing greeted them with a meadow bright with wildflowers and alive with the warm buzzing of bees. As they retreated back into the shadow of the trees, Ash pointed in amazement at a tree that had fallen down, yet whose branches grew up toward the sky, and had become trees in their own right. Ash neared it to investigate. “Look,” he exclaimed, “the original tree is still connecting them!”
One of the offspring was as thick as a utility pole, if not thicker, and reaching at least as high up. Cooper watched Ash touch it, and close his eyes in deep concentration.
Moments passed.
When Ash’s eyelids fluttered open again, he gazed upon the structure in wonder, before he turned back to Cooper and said in a hushed, reverent tone: “The water tells me that the branches that were touching the ground turned into roots. I have never seen anything like this before.”
Curious, and perhaps feeling a little challenged, Cooper touched the tree as well. He was not feeling for the water, however. His senses searched for the solid matter outside of it as well as within it. He closed his eyes, just as Ash had, and extended his senses in an exploratory trance. To his surprise, he saw what Ash was talking about. It was there, much like a negative image would be in an old-fashioned negative. He saw the absence of water – because he really couldn’t see water the way Ash did.
The roots were surrounded by deposits of river mud compacted into thin, periodic soil layers. The strata that formed the island rested upon a rock which jutted from deep below. Yet, to his surprise, Cooper didn’t feel any stirrings of energy, the way he felt them either at Millvale or in Lawrenceville, where the ley lines had converged into a node.
He opened his eyes and let go of the tree. “It’s amazing. But, you know what else is amazing? This island is anchored to bedrock! It’s anchored to bedrock, and I can see it structured just fine, except... except there are no energy patterns associated with it.”
Ash beamed a satisfied smile. “I know. I asked. I had brought Mark and Paul out here and they looked the area over. They couldn’t see anything either, but then again I’m not that good at sensing, not unless you’re around.” His expression took on a somber cast. “Jared would’ve been able to see even the weakest energy lines.”
Cooper swallowed dry. Out here, apart from the civilization and away from the background hum of the city, it was easy to forget the losses they had suffered so recently. He nodded. “He would. But, Ash, Jared would want us to be happy. If there really aren’t any ley lines under this island, Jared would’ve told us you found a perfect energy-neutral laboratory.”
THE PATH LED them to the other side of the island, and as they walked downstream to the bottom tip, the ground rose up to a top of a craggy cliff, the surface of which was covered with a stand of slippery elm.
“One of the volunteers told me that morel mushrooms grow under the slippery elm,” Ash said. “He also said it’s too late for them this time of the year.”
Ash glanced at Cooper to see if Cooper would reply, but Cooper scampered up the rocks instead, and peered through the trees at the river below. “I like this place,” called out. “Any chance we could camp up here?”
Ash shook his head. “Not if you want fire. And even the flat top is too rocky to pitch a tent. Although...” Another thought crossed his mind. If Cooper felt comfortable up here, this might be a good place where to explore their love making.
How far could they go, and still feel good personally?
How wild could they get, and still have Cooper’s powers buffered by the flow of the river around them?
If their experiment worked out, then maybe this would become their special place.
“Is there a spot you like the best?” Ash asked as he stretched his legs, climbing up the steep path and letting his toes grab the soft soil, using gnarled roots to anchor his feet on the slope.
Cooper was standing by the rock outcropping. He stroked it. The dark, gray stone was about waist high, somewhat slanted, and its surface was flat and smooth. Ash quirked his eyebrow, and grinned. “You know, I can think think of all kinds of naughty things to do to you on top of this rock. It’s a lot like a sacrificial altar, and you’d be my offering.”
Cooper’s cheeks colored, but he didn’t divert his eyes from Ash. The rock, dark here in the deep shade, held the promise of excitement.
“And look at the thin, twisted roots up top,” Ash said, climbing up like a goat and giving them a good tug. He raked his melting gaze over Cooper from head to toe, then back up again. His voice grew husky with need. “You even have built-in handholds, so you don’t slide!”
CHAPTER 25
They set up the camp first. Cooper was pleased to find that both he and Ash knew how to set up a tent, and how to secure fire pits. They spread inflatable pads on the floor of the tent, and their sleeping bags on top of them. One more round bundle peeked out of the big, yellow waterproof bag. Ash pointed it out with a victorious grin.
“We have a spare blanket,” he said. “We can take it picnicking. Or if it gets too cold. Or...” He raised his eyebrows significantly.
“Outside?” Cooper chuckled. Leave it to Ash to want to get all hot and sweaty outside, as though he, and not Cooper, was the one with the hippie parents.
Ash closed the tent zipper and leaned into Cooper suggestively.
“You smell good,” Ash whispered right next to Cooper’s ear, and when his exhale brushed Cooper’s earlobe, he felt goosebumps pop up and down his thigh.
He sprang wood so fast, he felt light-headed all of a sudden, and a flush of desperate want washed over him. They had been making do with careful encounters while Cooper had his ground-stone, but ever since Cooper had sacrificed the artifact to pacify the node, he and Ash had been keeping their hands to themselves. Hugging their respective edges of their large king-size bed had grown so old, it was downright Paleolithic.
“If you want. Sure.” Whatever. Cooper was ready to bed down in a patch of poison ivy, if Ash asked him to. Just the thought of being together, unrestrained and unafraid, and cutting loose? That, in itself, was intoxicating.
As badly as he was yearning for Ash’s touch, he couldn’t say anything. Had he vocalized any of his feelings and any of his desires, with their mutual connection and the tentative ebb and flow of power that was beginning to build up between them, Cooper was harder than the rock they had found before. He just knew he’d shoot at the slightest provocation.
Cooper just stood there, waiting. Waiting for Ash.
Ash ran his hand up his arm, then flinched away in sudden understanding, and nodded. “Let me grab some supplies.”
COOPER SHIFTED, feeling
the fabric of his pants pressed against him with more than the tightness he had become accustomed to over the last two weeks. Being around Ash, and being unable to relieve himself, had become an exercise in blue balls. But it wasn’t just the physical release Cooper had been craving.
He wanted that closeness they had experienced the first time. He wanted to feel the merging of their souls again, and to sense the structure of Ash’s mind. Likewise, knowing that Ash could see what was happening inside him was a huge turn-on. He couldn’t hide, and denying his deepest, darkest desires was of no use. For some reason, this, too, robbed him of balance and made his world all askew.
It seemed like an eternity later the slab of stone appeared next to them. They stopped, gasping for air, and Cooper wasn’t sure whether he felt winded because of the short climb, or because Ash was there and they were about to do it.
Finally, Cooper stirred first, and broke the silence with an awkward, “I guess I better get undressed.”
To his surprise, Ash didn’t reply. He just swallowed and nodded. Seeing that his words were also stuck, knowing that he wasn’t the only one who was just a little nervous, gave Cooper impetus to move and get his act together.
Fabric flew to the ground. Cooper stood in the deep shade of the trees, not worried about sunburn in his nakedness. He gave Ash a questioning look. “Now what?”
“Now I will make this more comfortable for you.” Ash took that extra blanket that they had brought, and spread it on top of the rock. “I want you to lie down and make yourself comfortable.” Ash’s gaze grew heavy with desire. “And I want you to hold onto the roots overhead, and brace your heels at the end of this slab.
Ash had a tendency to get bossy most of the time, pushing Cooper’s boundaries. Cooper tolerated it – but there were times, such as now, when Ash’s bossiness was exceedingly attractive.
But it was always good to push back, if only on principle.
Cooper took his time climbing up the rock, all languid grace and coy hesitation. He enjoyed the warm breeze as he settled himself down on the hard surface that felt so much like the comforting, cool concrete, but also like a soft blanket his lover had provided for him to ensure his comfort.
He would, in turn, take care of Ash’s comfort – and Ash’s pleasure.
ASH STOOD by the bottom of the rock, naked and frustrated in his wanting. Just laying eyes on Cooper, from the way Cooper took his time, and from the mischievous expression on his face to his strength and grace, his lover was well aware of his charms, and of the effect he had on Ash.
“You see something you like?”
Ash bit his lip. If he said anything, if he reacted in any way, his control would’ve been shot. Not only would that be embarrassing, but then he could not give Cooper the pleasure he so richly deserved.
He started counting backwards from one hundred. That would distract him just enough...
Cooper fluttered his eyelashes and slid his ass toward him. Then, slowly, as though this was a special performance, he spread his knees and anchored his heels at the edge of the slab.
The calculated display had its desired effect. Ash groaned.
Cooper smiled. Satisfaction and mischief mingled, but there was also an endearing, nervous undercurrent. That little lapse of self-confidence reminded Ash that, yes, they weren’t here just for a weekend of mind-blowing sex. They were here to see whether they could, in fact, have mind-blowing sex without leveling half of Pittsburgh. The thought had a sobering effect.
He wanted to ask Cooper how he was doing, but instead, an impatient command flew out of his mouth.
Cooper’s lips parted, his eyelids fell to half-mast, and he reached up and grabbed the tree roots which provided such convenient handholds.
“Ash.” His name was a hurried supplication.
Ash couldn’t reply, not in words. Instead, he launched himself into action and climbed up onto the rocky outcrop.
Now his knees were between Cooper’s knees. He grasped Cooper’s shins for balance – and such nice shins they were. Just downy enough with leg hair... and so familiar.
Ash followed the call of his greedy palms, allowing for more contact. He slid halfway up Cooper’s smooth inner thighs before it occurred to him to stop himself, and ask. “Are you centered?”
“Yeah,” Cooper ground out. “It’s not like you’re helping, though.”
With great effort, Ash let go of Cooper’s thighs. “Better?”
A shuddered exhale rushed out of Cooper’s throat, as though an unknown force ripped it out. He closed his eyes, and after three semi-even breaths, he opened them again. “I can feel the rock under me. It goes all the way down. I don’t feel like... Like I am going to be washed away, or anything.”
Ash took this as an invitation to resume caressing Cooper’s warm skin. “That’s good. Very good.”
He was drawn to Cooper with more than physical attraction. As he stretched out his senses, he could feel the whirling dynamo at Cooper’s center. In his mind, he saw the tendrils of power that began escaping Cooper’s grasp. He flung out his own talent, mingling with him, like twining fingers, like braiding strands of hair.
Maybe he could help his lover from broadcasting... or maybe his lover would pull him out of his body and into a maelstrom of a storm that was sure to brew over the lakes just few hundred miles away.
But this was a test. A test to see whether being on an island made a difference.
Whether it helped.
Ash relinquished his control to the river, trusting it to absorb all they had to dish out. He was keenly aware of the Allegheny’s familiar presence, and of its flow. Its power, too, and of the currents of energy which so readily mingled with Cooper’s, and now with his own.
For a brief moment, he wondered whether the river could suck them dry.
Then it was just skin and friction, chest to chest and cock to cock. Ash hooked his arms under Cooper’s shoulders to keep from slipping down.
Cooper let go of the root with one hand, and hooked his arm around Ash’s back to help him.
This one last contact undid Ash as he gave up the last vestiges of control to simply feel, and let his body follow its own path.
The sensations poured into him, heady and incredible. He didn’t know where the physical ended and the emotional began, but whatever it was, it flung him into a place of fantastic pleasure and colors, of easy warmth that gave more comfort than he could ever imagine. The physical and the – the other – mingled, creating one great whole. The spark of passion he received from Cooper set off an explosion of power.
An enormous release – but one he was aware of this time around.
A dark cloud veiled the sun. The silence of the river shattered upon a deafening peal of thunder, and the nearby lightning flashed through the chartreuse canopy of leaves overhead.
A few ragged gasps, a hitch in his breath, and a hot jet of come spurted as their cocks slid one too many times against each other in an urgent, smooth caress.
In the void of silence the lightning had left behind, Ash was aware of just the wild heartbeat of two men, syncopated in a music of its own, thundering music that played against the backup of heavy raindrops drumming against the leaves overhead.
ONCE HIS BREATH settled down and his heart no longer threatened to escape the confines of his chest, Cooper pressed a kiss into Ash’s neck, then another. “I love you so much.” Even though he mumbled his words against Ash’s rain-dampened skin, Ash stirred and kissed him on the lips.
“I love you too.” A whisper of wonder.
“Was there an earthquake?” Cooper asked. He didn’t feel one. He didn’t feel anything other than Ash’s warmth in contrast to the cool summer rain. He noticed, once again, how he had come to associate the scent of Ash’s skin, together with the crisp whiff of ozone, with making love.
“I don’t know,” Ash said slowly. “It was so hard to pay attention, I just let the river do its thing.” Cooper saw his lips tighten. “Sorry for getting us wet.”
“Could be, your energies don’t get washed away by the river,” Cooper said. With a hint of mischief, he smiled up as he soaked in the rain-drenched, spent vision that was Ash. “Maybe the river even amplifies you!”
Ash groaned. “I don’t need to be amplified.”
“No, you’re perfect the way you are.” Cooper didn’t mind getting sappy on the theory that he seldom regretted the things he did, but he almost always came to regret having chickened out and not grabbed an opportunity by its horns.
Lips brushed his brow, his eyelids. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. And we have watchers out there. We’ll find out if there were any earthquakes.”
“No sirens,” Cooper said hesitantly, wanting to know for sure. The uncertainty set tension to his jaw and shoulders all over again.
“No sirens,” Ash replied with a gentle smile. “And no worries. We’ll fix it one way or another. But now we can get dry. How clever of us to pitch the tent first, wouldn’t you agree?”
CHAPTER 26
The rain persisted into the night and through all of Saturday. Cooper didn’t mind, exactly – he liked rain, because rain reminded him of Ash. Besides, any moron could get a fire going when it was dry out, but sustaining a proper fire through all this weather took skill borne of long years of experience.
“So you’re shoving the coals to the side?” Ash asked as he watched Cooper fuss.
“Yeah. See, here? This is the cooking area, and you want to cook over hot coals, not over the blazing flame. That would just burn dinner.”
Sure enough, once he nestled a cast-iron skillet into the coals and dropped few slices of bacon on its black surface, Ash began to breathe deeper, and his eyes filled with anticipation.
“Jared and I did this every time,” Cooper said. “You make the bacon first, then use the fat for biscuits, if you have a lot. Or for eggs, which is what we’re doing.” Saying Jared’s name aloud still felt strange. The sharp pang in his chest began to dull into acceptance.
Jared was dead. Or was he? Cooper was sure he had felt something of him as he touched the sword, but... but that was probably only his imagination. He sure had not felt his energies in the shields of the node.
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